I saw a thread where several mentioned being in their mid 20s, which made me curious as to the age ranges of our group here.

What age are you?

I'm also curious as to what age you were when you started prepping, but that is for comments, not the poll.

I'm in my early 40s now. I don't remember being aware of 'survivalism' or 'prepping' when I was younger, but I do remember that I used to carry a waterproof cannister in my trunk with stuff in in like: sawblade, TP, emergency blanket, first aid, etc. I have NO IDEA now why I did it, but for some reason I had such a kit put together - long before there was internet, and I knew of no one else that did such a thing.

I then forgot about it all for a number of years - no preps at all for Y2K. I started getting back to it, and doing it more in depth, circa 2004 after my daughter was born.

24

39.

Sorta half-assed it until about 2005, been pretty steady since then.

24. Started with small preps, mostly stuff to keep in the truck when I was 21. I got more heavily involved in the last year or so.

Aside from getting the self-reliant example of my grandparents from about age 4, I started into the movement (as a lurker) back in '78 when I got back from Europe. That was my study phase Started walking the walk back in the mid '80s, vagaries of life and civilization permitting.

I started to have the prepping mindset at 12. By 14 I was making speed loaders for my Marlin model 60, putting together first aid kits, and fire starting kits. I guess the lifestyle is just intuitive to a boy who spent a lot of his childhood alone in the woods.

29 now, started prepping about 5 years ago when I left the .mil.

I am among the older gents on the board. I grew up poor in the rural South. Being frugal, and prepping has been a way of life for many years.

mid 30's and been prepping to some extent since early teens. I didn't get particularly serious about it till I moved down south and had hurricanes to deal with along with flooding just from a decent rain... My years in between I always prepared for normal "oh shit" moments but never thought of that as prepping so much as not being stupid. If it's winter time and you live in the snow belt you should probably have extra warm clothes, a shovel, maybe some sand... in the car. Some hand warmers wouldn't be bad and checking your flares and such is always a good idea. If it's summer time you probably want some extra water or other hydration and some sun screen and bug stuff. I generally have kept a little bag or even bucket with misc junk in my vehicle that just changed with the seasons or location.

If I was headed out of a populated urban or suburban area I'd generally toss some other stuff in, like a better first aid kit and some basic camping gear along with a change of clothes in case I got wet somehow. By basic camping gear I mean some fire starting stuff, compass, topos and photo maps of the area (rarely detailed other than for the area I was going to be in, but enough to pick out the largest hills around and rivers and such). Quite often the woodsy stuff included a hatchet and the shovel. Some food and drinks as well. I always kind of figured on a couple hours turning into overnight and part of the next day. Easy enough to happen if there's a road washed out or you get stuck far enough back in the boonies in the evening that walking out before morning is less safe than just waiting for daylight. A twisted ankle due to poor visibility is no fun.

These days I prep a bit more long term but it's still secondary to the day to day stuff. Let's face it, we use the little stuff far more often. Generator might be needed once or twice a year, maybe. Lanterns and such are the same unless you take them camping or something. Grabbing a bandaid, allergy meds, advil.... from the first aid kit happens regularly. The drinks in the vehicle, or snack food.... Constant use and replacement. I don't consider a specific food item to be preps or not preps so I'm always using and replacing that stuff.

My focus now is to mitigate the social and economic mess I think we're headed toward. Short term acute crisis then long term low grade mess that makes the current situation look like the golden years but not complete anarchy.

I agree. I honestly never did things any differently? Between growing up in the country and having relatives who lived through the Great Depression and intense poverty and unrest in late 19th c early 20th c Europe- Its just a way of life. To this day I don't think of myself as a "prepper" indeed I don't even like the term. We just have always prepared for the unforseen future. You stock well when times are good for whan they aren't. Its just the way we've always done it. The way I see it my way of life just happens to coincide with this "prepper" thing.

I spent a couple of years staring across the Fulda Gap wondering if today was going to be the day.

54 here. My survivalism interests began after I read The Stand. I soon gathered all the info I could from American Survival Guide, and Kurt Saxon stuff. I read Foxfire series voraciously, along with every copy of Mother Earth News I could find. I was a GI, so anything I could do was muted by the shadow of servitude to Uncle Sam. I retired (USAF) in '96, and started prepping when Y2K reared its ugly head and I was all prepped and gtg when it was a fizzle. Not disappointed, by any means! Now I just prep for the worst and hope for the best. Wife fully on board over the past five years, so life as I know it is darn good.

Old dude.